1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to mobile devices. In particular, the present invention relates to authenticating and making payments at a point-of-sale (POS) using a mobile device.
2. Background of the Invention
The information revolution is taking over, and certain needs are universal. For instance, transmitting identity information is a universal need having different approaches. Purchasing goods and services at a point of sale (POS) is another universal need. Especially prevalent in many societies is the ability to make payments without using cash. Credit cards are a prime example of such payment methods. However, credit cards can be lost, stolen, and can be forgotten.
Mobile payment is becoming popular in developed nations. There are estimated to be 3.3 billion active cellular telephones in use across the world today, and mobile phones are increasingly being used to process a payment at a POS. Mobile payment typically includes a near-field communication (NFC) system, whereby an NFC-equipped phone is waved in front of an NFC scanner, such as a radio frequency identification (RFID) scanner, and an amount is debited from the NFC circuitry or secure element embedded within the phone. However, this requires NFC-equipped phones, which leads to added costs to modify phones and POS terminals. Further, the information stored on the phone itself leads to insecurity. Sensitive information can be stolen from the phone, or the phone itself can be stolen and/or hacked.
What is therefore needed is a secure system and method for enabling mobile payments.